When the Plan Doesn't Work

What do you do when your plan doesn't work out the way you planned? Do you throw it all out? Do you get creative?

I am working on a Project 365 album this year. Each day is represented by at least one picture and a statement or paragraph about that day. Each day can be represented by no more than one page in the album. But some pages may represent as much as a week.

So, what do I do if I miss a day? A friend suggested to take extra pictures the next day. No one will know that the photo wasn't taken on the exact day. Is this cheating?

Well, I have missed a few days over the past 5 months. What I have done is simply have pictures from the week but not worry about dating them. Then have a list of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,... with a statement of each day. I don't consider myself cheating because I am not pretending to have all the photos. I just don't bring it to the attention of the person looking at my album.

What about a baby book? If your child is 15 years old, can you go back and create the baby book? I read an article in a scrapbook magazine years ago that suggested making up dates for the child's milestones. I don't know if I agree with that. But I do believe you can take a guess as to when something happened. Don't remember the date of her first steps? Take a look at pictures. I know looking at my daughter's photos that she walked after her first birthday but within a week of it. I just base it on the events that are in the photos. I never make up dates; I just am not that specific.

Looking back at the few photos I have of me as a child and the little information written in my baby book, I feel that today we go a little over board in documenting every detail of our lives. I do wish I had more family photos from my childhood. I don't feel however that I need as many as I take of my three kids now. My mom made sure we had a happy childhood without worrying about the dates of things in an album. She made sure we had our baseball photos but never added the year. Going back to those photos, should I throw them out since they don't fit into my plan for having it all in the correct order. No. I simply estimate where to put things and move along.

Sometimes the thing that stops us in a project is the embellishments are not working. There is a spot that must have something decorative and I can't figure out what would look good there. What to do?! Don't abandon a project. If what you have doesn't work, nothing is calling out to you saying "use me!" then it's time to accept that the spot is going to stay like that and move on. Don't stop scrapbooking. Give yourself permission to move on and not throw it away and not get bogged down with it.

I know plenty of scrappers who simply don't want to complete the project because they can't do it exactly the way they have it planned. Everything must be correct and perfect. I suggest not throwing it all out but instead get creative. The fun part of scrapbooking is getting creative. Change your plans. Be flexible. Don't worry about the project too much. Have fun!

Footloose Card Workshop Coming Soon

Join me on May 17 at 7 for a fun card workshop featuring the Footloose paper pack.

We will have a great time creating 5 projects. I charge $15 for the workshop. But if you place an order that evening of $30 or more, I will rebate $5 of the workshop fee. Bring your favorite adhesive and your favorite scissors. Call or email today to sign up.

If you are unable to make it on the 17th or want a workshop closer to you, I can bring a workshop to you. Just let me know you are interested and let's set something up.

Send me a note at cathryno@gmail.com.

Have fun crafting!

Fun With Dotty For You

At my Club CTMH get together on Saturday, we played with the Dotty For You paper. This paper pack is a special with Close To My Heart this month. If you make a purchase of $35 or more, you can purchase this pack for just $5. It is only available through the end of the month.

I have to admit, I wasn't too sure about this paper when I first saw it. I'm not a bright colors type of person but I have to admit that the pokka dots make me happy. I was really excited when Judy at our Club CTMH crop handed me this card during the swap.

I love it!  Simple but lovely.

Our group together created a few cards right there on the spot looking at papers and getting ideas. My favorite was this card:

I really like the rose pattern paper in this paper pack. There are so many things you can do with it. I am thinking about using it with some of the green and blue pokka dot papers for a layout with my Girl Scouts.

If you would like some of springy paper, click on the shop with me button or give me a call.

Creating a Banner

Have fun using the Cricut Art Philosophy Collection (z1686) and make banners to decorate a room, use as a party decoration, or add a small banner to your scrapbook layout.

National Scrapbook Month Special

Close To My Heart is offering a nice special in honor of National Scrapbook Month.

Spend $35 and you can purchase this "springy" pack of paper for just $5. Great deal and a lot of fun. Click on the shop with me box to the right or call me today. I'll be happy to help.

How are you celebrating National Scrapbook Month? I am celebrating with a scrapbooking weekend. I hope to get a lot accomplished and have a great time with one of my best friends and crafting buddy. This is how I keep sane.

How about you? Set a day aside on your calendar to do your craft. Remember, if you don't mark if off on your calendar, something will fill up that space. You need your time to scrapbook.

Happy Easter!

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter!

Florentine Card

One of my goals last week was to create 10 cards for a card swap. I'm happy to say that I did complete that goal (and most of the others) last week.

I used the Florentine Workshop on the Go Kit  (G1038) and the pewter badge buttons (Z1704). The sentiment came from the "Just for You" set (B1398).  The flower was hand cut out after stamped. Then I used a sponge and inked the edges to give the flower a little more depth. The inks used were Goldrush and Olive.

Time to set goals for this week and get a few more pages in my album done.